First of a Kind: FREE empanada fest to take over Tampa Bay this weekend

Wild empanada creation out of the food truck, A Boy Named Sous; one of the confirmed vendors of Tampa's First-Ever Empanada Festival. Photo by Sous, LLC | Facebook

​Hungry? This free event in Tampa Bay will have you stuffing your face with crispy pockets of delicious goodness this Saturday at a brewery in the Sunshine State's Seminole Heights. The best part? Admission is free!

A foodie fest presented by Brewed Life Festival, known for their food-centric festivities all across Tampa Bay, the first-ever Tampa Empanada Festival will take place between 12 pm and 7 pm at Common Dialect Beerworks' Brewery, located at 5023 North Florida Avenue.

They already have a pretty solid lineup of vendors serving up their own twist on the typically savory snack too, and it appears that this festival will be celebrating National Empanada Day the right way.

Teased tastes festival-goers can anticipate have included shredded beef, smoked and mojo pork, seasoned chicken, pepperoni pizza, guava, as well as sweet ripe banana stuffed empanadas. You never know what else these vendors might come up with.

Some legendary dessert offerings come out of Stuft Gourmet Foods — where you'll find unique sweet stuffed hand pies on their menu, like the Caramelized Apple Whiskey Flambe and Brie Cheese dusted with Cinnamon Sugar that always has us drooling.

7 vendors have been confirmed for the festival this Saturday, April 8, 2023; check out the full list so far below:

• A Boy Names Sous
• Stuft Gourmet Foods
• Nona's Artisan Kitchen
• Top Nada
• Empanada King
• Pabellion
• Everlovin Empanadas
  
  

In addition to a lineup of good eats, enjoy Common Dialect's family and dog-friendly atmosphere and an impressive beer list at their freshly brewed Brewery.
The whole point of a food fest is to unlock your inner Ash Ketchup and try them all — and that's especially true when the title of Best Empanada in Tampa Bay is on the line.

Fill your hand-pie hole with all the empanadas you can eat before casting your vote for your favorite Empanada in The Bay.

In our humble opinion over here at Uncovering Florida, this festival could use the gooey cheeseburger and Cuban-sandwich-stuffed empanadas served up at local hidden-gem, Empamama's. They would 100% get our vote!
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For more information about Tampa's First Empanada Festival, check out the official event page here.
Article by Rachael Volpe